What information do general practitioners need to care for patients with lung cancer? An exploration of the flow of clinical information within a hospital's lung cancer care team and between the team and the patient's general practitioners
PhD student: Stella Rowlands
Supervisor: Dr Joanne Callen
Co-supervisor: Professor Johanna Westbrook
Background:
The effective management of patients who are treated by multiple health professionals, who could be hospital or community based, requires the timely exchange of appropriate clinical information. This is particularly true in the management of patients with cancer: a chronic disease requiring complex management over a patient's lifetime. These patients are often treated by hospital-based health professionals for specialised care and then discharged home to be managed by community-based health professionals, such as general practitioners. The information exchange between the hospital-based cancer care team and the general practitioner is crucial for the effective management of these patients.
Aim of research:
The aim of this study is to explore the patient information needs of general practitioners in the management of their patients with lung cancer and to identify possible strategies for improving the quality, timeliness and format of this information.
Research Questions:
- How is patient information communicated between the health professionals within the hospital-based lung cancer team?
- What is the quality, format and timeliness of patient information which general practitioners currently receive from the hospital-based lung cancer team?
- How could communication and transfer of lung cancer patient information between health professionals within the hospital-based lung cancer team, and between the team and the general practitioner, be improved?
Description of research:
A multi method design combining qualitative and quantitative methods will be used to explore the information needs of general practitioners in the management of their patients with lung cancer.
Data related to information exchange between members of the lung cancer team and communication of information from the cancer care team to general practitioners will be collected using in-depth interviews. The lung cancer team includes a diverse range of health professionals including allied health, medical and nursing disciplines and covers thoracic medicine, thoracic surgery, medical oncology and palliative care. Therefore in order for the information flow within the team to be comprehensively described and understood a qualitative approach in the form of interviews was chosen.
Data related to the information needs of general practitioners will be collected using interviews of key general practitioners. Whilst the literature includes research in the area of communication between hospitals and general practitioners it does not specifically deal with communication in relation to the management of patients with lung cancer. The best practice model for the delivery of services to patients with cancer is within the context of a multidisciplinary team and the exploration of the information flow within this context has also not been previously reported in the literature. The final stage of data collection will involve the administration of a questionnaire to the population of members of the Division of General Practice.
Significance and outcomes:
This research is significant as there are no other published studies which explore specifically the information needs of general practitioners in relation to lung cancer patients. It is also the first study to explore how patient information is communicated between members of a hospital-based cancer care team and how this exchange of information could be improved. At the completion of the study, recommendations will be made on how transfer of information within a hospital based cancer care team and between the team and the health professionals in the community can be improved. Barriers to information exchange and electronic communication solutions will be explored.